Vermin Supreme: The man behind the boot

Most people don’t know whether to peg presidential candidate Vermin Supreme as a genius or a weirdo. After having the privilege of dining with him last week, I found the truth is somewhere in between.

Supreme is no weirdo, no matter how much he might like us to think so. His tactics, while unconventional, are based in intelligent and deep-reaching observations of the corruption in our country’s political system. As for the boot hat he wears, well, it attracts attention, doesn’t it?

“I’m often described as the ‘F you’ candidate.”

With this one line, Supreme summed up his political identity to a T. Since the late 1980s, Supreme has literally been throwing glitter in the face of conventional politics. He wears a black rubber boot on his head, promises ponies to every American if elected, wears multiple ties at once, advocates for mandatory tooth brushing laws, and, yes, throws glitter onto some of his fellow candidates, insisting that he’s “turning them gay.” Not what you would call a conventional campaign strategy, but after talking to Supreme, I found that there is, in fact, a method to the madness.

Supreme models his policies based on problems he sees in the American political system. One of his largest concerns is that America is headed towards a “police state,” where American citizens are overly monitored, micro-managed, and subjected to privacy breaches.
To highlight the issue, Supreme created his mandatory Tooth Brushing Law. This law would include special police forces to break into people’s houses at 3 a.m. to make sure the members of the household have brushed their teeth. It would provide an addictive, (yet harmless, or so he claims in his promotional videos) tooth paste, and a program that would develop a breed of flying monkeys to act as tooth fairies.

This is not merely a comedy act. Supreme means to exemplify, albeit in an exaggerated fashion, the consequences of policies that reach too far into the lives of Americans. He wants to show how they and end up causing harm, even if, on the surface, they are presented as policies to secure the safety of our nation.

Supreme describes his mock policies as, “A warning of what has come to pass; a prophecy if you will.”

How did it all start? How does one go from average citizen to pony wielding activist?

Supreme said his first activism experience took place in high school. “There was a scandal involving the frontline of our hockey team. They were busted using speed,” he explained. This resulted in the police setting up a monitoring station across the canal from the high school, which led to multiple arrests. Supreme decided to raise awareness about what was going on. “I made a poster [that said] ‘big pig is watching you.’ ” This was a reference to a popular TV show at the time.

Supreme’s first truly political act didn’t take place until years later. In1986 he joined the Great Peace March for Global Nuclear Disarmament. The march comprised of thousands of people marching across the country in protest of nuclear weapons. When the march passed through Baltimore, where Supreme was living, he decided to join them. He had read about the march a few weeks prior and fervently supported the cause. On the walk to Washington D.C Supreme gained the connections and inspiration that “started me on my political journey.”

One thing made expressly clear during the interview is that Supreme’s goal is not to be elected president. When asked, hypothetically, what he would really do if elected to office, he replied flatly, “Ain’t happening.” When pressed he added, “Go down in flames, man. Get impeached and stuff.” His goal is not to win the presidential elections, only to raise awareness about the corruption he sees in the American political system. So far his plan is working marvelously.

“If you show a child a picture of me in a crowd and say what’s wrong with this picture they say, that guy.”

It’s clear that Supreme’s methods get him in the spotlight. He stands out from a crowd of conventional politicians, and his bravado has gained him national recognition. As he stated frankly at dinner, “If I didn’t have the boot on my head, I’d just be another chump.”

With memes, glitter, and ponies, Supreme has constructed a brilliant vessel through which he can express his views and be heard by a far-reaching audience. Whether or not you agree with his values or flamboyant ways of communicating them, Supreme must be respected for his media-attracting abilities and creativity.

To quote J.K Rowling through the words of her character Kingsley Shacklebolt, “You may not like him, Minister, but you can’t deny; he’s got style.”

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